Translating device



June 13, 1939. J-. VON ISSENDORF 2,162,533

TRANSLATING DEVICE Filed Dec. 16, 1931 Q 2 Sheets-Shet 1 wlTNsssEs; INVENTOR 7 1% MM Ja /91911 van fss'enaorf' ATTORNEY June 13, 1939. V NDOR 2,162,533

- TRANSLATING DEVICE v Filed Dec. 16, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1 :5 I (I r:\ 5 .3 4

WITNESSES: INVENTOR Jury en 1/011 lssenaorf' v I BY W ATTORNEY Patented June 13, 1939 UNITED STATES TRANSLATING DEVICE Jiirgen von Issendorf, Berlin-Siemensstadt, Germany, assignor to Westinghouse Electric, &

Manufacturing Company,

Pennsylvania a corporation of Application December 16, 1931, Serial No. 581,389 In Germany December 17, 1930 8 Claims.

This invention relates to a scheme for controlling arc rectifiers by means of alternating voltages applied to the control grids, or to the outer layers of the anode tubes; said alternating voltages being adjustable in such a manner that at any instant the grids or the outer layers can be brought either at a positive potential sufficient to ignite the corresponding anode, or at a negative potential sufiicient to make the corresponding anode inoperative.

The alternating voltages applied to the controlling members, in line with this invention, are not sine-shaped, but are given such a curve shape that the transitions of the controlling members from one operating condition to the other, and more inparticular the transitions from the inoperative condition to the ignited condition, will take place almost instantaneously.

A more detailed explanation of the underlying principle of this invention will be given by referring to the examples illustrated on the draw ings.

A curve and the connection diagram shown in Figs. 1 and 2 have reference to a known arrangement, and will be used for making comparisons.

The curves shown in Figs. 3-6 can be adopted for the purpose of this invention.

The connection diagram of Fig. 7 relates to Fig. 6..

Comparisons can be based on the sine-shaped voltage curves of Fig. 1, representing the voltage of a rectifier (or valve) anode, and the voltage of the corresponding grid, for the connection shown in Fig. 2. The main transformer is designated by I4; I5 are the anodes of the rectifier I6 which has grids I! connected through protecting resistors I8 to the transformer I9. The cathode of rectifier I6 is designated by 20; resistor 2| represents the load.

At the instant tz the negative potential of the grid has become too weak to block any longer the operationof the anode. At this instant the anode arc will be ignited. However, this well known control method has the disadvantage that at the instant when ignition takes place, the potential of the grid does not remain constant but depends to a considerable degree on the load current carried by the rectifier. As a consequence the control characteristic (which shows how the rectifier voltage or current depends on the regulating member of the induction regulator) will have an undesirable unsymmetry (jump).

These disadvantages can be avoided, in line with the invention, by distorting the shape of the curves, more particularly as shown in Figs. 3-6,

A connection diagram embodying Fig. 6 is given V in Fig. 7. Here the control members I are connected through ohmic resistances 2, or through other current limiting devices, to a direct current source 3, and further through glow discharge tubes 4 to an'alternating current source 5. This arrangement is such that when the ignition voltage of each individual glow discharge tube is being periodically exceeded, a periodical current impulse will flow through that particular tube, changing instantaneously the voltage applied tothe corresponding controlling member. Through the high resistances 2 .a fundamental voltage, negative in respect to the cathode, is being applied to the grids. In parallel herewith, and through the glow discharge lamps 4, is being applied the sine-shaped secondary voltage of the induction regulator 6. The glow discharge lamps have quite specific ignition and extinction voltages. This means that as soon as the ignition voltage of a glow discharge lamp is exceeded, that particular lamp will let the current go through, and the corresponding anode grid is given at the very same instant a (more positive) voltage sufiicient to ignite the anode are.

In all curve diagrams, I indicates the time curve of the anode (single-phase) voltage, and 8 the grid voltage. In Fig. 6, 9 indicates the secondary (phase) voltage of the induction regulator, III the value of the ignition voltage, II the time curve of the cathode potential, I2 the value of the extinction voltage of the glow discharge tubes. Curve I3 represents the voltage of the controlling grid.

It will be seen from the examples given that the normally sine-shaped alternating voltages available for application tothe controlling members can be distorted by means of transformers or reactors with saturated iron in such a manner that the time curve of the voltages will have a steep increase, over a certain interval, at least once during each cycle of the alternating voltage (Figs. 3 and 4). The normally sine-shaped alternating voltages available for application to the. controlling electrodes can be modified, as shown by Fig. '7, by means of gas-filled discharge tubes or high-vacuum electronic tubes, so that the amplitudes of the voltages, particularly those of negative polarity, will be reduced by diverting or limiting the current flow, whereas the steep parts of the time curve of the voltage remain unchanged. The voltages. for the controlling members can be supplied by a special rectifier of small capacity, which can also be equipped with controlling members, influenced by a control current of suitable curve shape. The use of this additional rectifier makes it possible to make the instant of ignition of high-vacuum electronic tubes independent of the current load.

It is more advantageous, for the purpose of controlling the ignition, to provide an additional inductive coupling between the controlling electrode and the direct current source, by means of which the circuit of the electronic tubes will transmit to the controlling electrode short impulses for initiating the ignition.

The use of an inductive coupling is very advantageous in connection with the fact that the occurrence of improper ignitions can be avoided to a remarkable degree.

I claim as my invention:

1. A translating system comprising an electric discharge device incorporating a control electrode and a plurality of principal electrodes, said device being in deenergized condition when predetermined potentials are impressed between its electrodes and in energized condition when certain other potentials are impressed between its electrodes, and said device being also capable only of abrupt transition from one condition to the other as said potentials are varied through a limiting relationship, a source of electrical potential having a negative terminal and a plurality of positive terminals, means for connecting said negative terminal to said control electrode and one of said positive terminals to one of said principal electrodes to maintain said device in a deenergized condition, an electric discharge device of the glow discharge type having a plurality of electrodes, means for connecting one of said electrodes to said control electrode, means for connecting another of said electrodes to the other positive terminal of said source of potential and means for energizing said glow discharge device thereby to connect said last-named positive terminal to said control electrode and to energize said electric discharge device.

2. Translating apparatus comprising an electric discharge device incorporating a cathode, a plurality of anodes and a control electrode to cooperate with each anode, all in a single container, means for impressing potentials between said anodes and said cathode, a source of electrical potential having a negative terminal, an intermediate terminal, and a positive terminal, means for connecting said intermediate terminal to said cathode, means for connecting said negative terminal to said control electrodes, thereby to maintain said electric discharge device normally in deenergized condition, a plurality of glow discharge devices, each of said devices having a plurality of electrodes, means for connecting one of the electrodes of each of said glow discharge devices to a different control electrode, means for connecting another of the electrodes of each of said glow discharge devices to the positive terminal of said source of potential and means for alternately energizing each of said glow discharge devices thereby to connect the corresponding control electrode tosaid positive terminal and to energize said electric discharge device as to the path between said cathode and the anode corresponding to said control electrode.

3. Translating apparatus comprising an electric discharge device incorporating a cathode, a plurality of anodes and a control electrode to cooperate with each anode, all in a single con tainer, means for impressing potentials between said anodes and said cathode, a source of electrical potential having a plurality of terminals between which differences of potentials exist, means for connecting one of said terminals to said cathode, means for connecting another of said terminals to said control electrodes, a plurality of glow discharge devices, each of said devices having a plurality of electrodes, means for connecting one of the electrodes of each of said glow discharge devices to a different control electrode, means for connecting another of the electrodes of each of said glow discharge devices to another terminal of said source of potential and means for energizing each of said glow discharge devices thereby to connect the corresponding control electrode to said last-named terminal.

4. A translating system comprising an electric discharge device incorporating a control electrode and a plurality of principal electrodes, said device being in deenergized condition when predetermined potentials are impressed between its electrodes and in energized condition when certain other potentials are impressed between its electrodes, and said device being also capable only of abrupt transition from one condition to the other as said potentials are varied through a limiting relationship, a source of electrical potential having a negative terminal and a plurality of positive terminals, means for connecting said negative terminal to said control electrode and one of said positive terminals to one of said principal electrodes to maintain said device in deenergized condition, an electric discharge device of the glow discharge type having a plurality of electrodes, means for connecting one of said electrodes to said control electrode, means for connecting another of said electrodes to a positive terminal of said source of potential and means for periodically impressing a potential that exceeds the ignition potential of said glow discharge device to energize said glow discharge device thereby to connect said last-named positive terminal to said control electrode and to energize said electric discharge device.

5. Translating apparatus comprising an elec tric discharge device incorporating a cathode, a plurality of anodes and a control electrode to cooperate with each anode, all in a single container, means for impressing potentials between said anodes and said cathode, a source of electrical potential having a plurality of terminals between which differences of potential exist, means for connecting one of said terminals to said cathode, means for connecting another of said terminals to said control electrodes, a plurality of glow discharge devices, each' of said devices having a plurality of electrodes, means for connecting one of the electrodes of each of said glow discharge devices to a different control electrode, means for connecting another of the electrodes of each of said glow discharge devices to another terminal of said source of potential and means for periodically impressing potentials that exceed the ignition potentials of each of said glow discharge devices to energize said devices thereby to connect the corresponding control electrode to said lastnamed terminal.

6. In an electric translating system, an electric valve having an anode with an associated control electrode and a cathode, a circuit for energizing said control electrode and including a transformer secondary winding, an auxiliary valve, and means connecting said auxiliary valve with said winding, said connecting means including electrical potential supply means, means for impressing only a portion of the potential output of said electrical potential supply means between said cathode and said control electrode, and means for regulating the quantity of current conducted by said auxiliary valve.

'7. In an electric translating system, an electric valve having an anode with an associated control electrode and a cathode, a circuit for energizing said control electrode and including a transformor secondary winding, an auxiliary valve, and means connecting said auxiliary valve with said winding, said connecting means including a re sistor and electrical potential supply means, means including apair of conductors, at least one of which connects to said resistor, for impressing a portion only of the potential output of said electrical potential supply means between said cathode and said control electrode, and

means for regulating the quantity of current conducted by said auxiliary valve.

8. In an electric translating system, an electri valve having a plurality of principal electrodes and a control electrode, a circuit for energizing said control electrode including a potential responsive auxiliary valve, potential supply means of a value sufficient to render said auxiliary valve conductive and means, connecting said auxiliary valve and said potential supply means, forming a completely closed circuit with said auxiliary valve and means for impressing a potential derived from said closed circuit between said control electrode and one of said principal electrodes.

JURGEN VON ISSENDORF. 

